Ransom For Many

As Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the Twelve disciples aside by themselves, and said to them on the way, “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will condemn him to death, and hand him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and scourged and crucified, and he will be raised on the third day.” 

Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee approached Jesus with her sons and did him homage, wishing to ask him for something. He said to her, “What do you wish?” She answered him, “Command that these two sons of mine sit, one at your right and the other at your left, in your kingdom.”

Jesus said in reply, “You do not know what you are asking. Can you drink the chalice that I am going to drink?” They said to him, “We can.” He replied, “My chalice you will indeed drink, but to sit at my right and at my left, this is not mine to give but is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.” 

When the ten heard this, they became indignant at the two brothers. But Jesus summoned them and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and the great ones make their authority over them felt. But it shall not be so among you. Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant; whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave. Just so, the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.”  (Matthew 20:17-28)

Special preference: skip the line to the front, and boldly walk past those patiently waiting in line.   We’ve all been outraged at this self-conceit and I’m-better-than-you attitude.  Jesus tells us to get to the back of the line, a humbling place to be.

This placement reminds me of a time my wife and I arrived at Logan and then at the bus stop to wait for transportation back to the Cape.   We were first then followed by late arriving, 40 or so teenagers from Eastern European countries travelling to the Cape for summer work. We thought, “No wait for us.”

The bus arrived but stopped at the end of the line.  Everyone spun around and reversed direction.  We were last and then unable to board the bus.   We weren’t pleased.  Jesus telling us the first will be last and the last will be first hit home.   Very prophetic although that’s not what he had in mind.

Sitting at the right or left hand of Jesus as the mother of the two brothers requested, is a bit presumptuous, but who can blame her?   I wonder if the 10 brothers who became indignant wished their mothers would have asked the same of Jesus for them.  It seems they sparked Jesus response of “whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant; whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave.”  

Are we one of the 10 + 2 brothers (or sisters)?  Do we understand we must give our lives as a “ransom for many?”  An interpretation of “ransom” can be freeing captives of remorse, guilt, and sorrow by our acts of forgiveness.   We all should be willing to ransom the captives in our lives wanting to be forgiven.  If not, they remain in chains.

Perhaps the best way to think about right and left is the painting by Leonardo da Vinci - The Last Supper.   His disciples are on his left and right at the table where they eat and drink as we do in Church when we celebrate his life and meaning through the Eucharist.

Deacon David Pierce